Reliving the 1000mi Iditarod Trail Invitational - Day 23

My strategy for the remaining 77mi to Nome was to make things up on the go. I’ve heard several horror stories about the blizzards in the Topkok hills and the blowholes on the way to Safety, so I expected a lot of unpredictability. It’s easy to think you’re almost there, but the stretch from White Mountain to Safety is known to be one of the most dangerous sections of the entire race. If the wind blows and a storm hits, it can be simply impassable. Five days earlier, six mushers got into serious trouble right there and had to be rescued. See https://bit.ly/39a5ohl and https://bit.ly/3K5hUeX for some crazy stories. So…nothing is guaranteed if you’ve made it thus far, quite the opposite.

From White Mountain, the trail gradually climbs over barren hills, some very steep, and crosses the Klokerblok River several times. I was able to do some more great sledding on my pulk. After reaching a final saddle, I could suddenly see the coast and as far as Cape Nome. The trail dropped steeply do the beach (more sledding!), where the Topkok shelter cabin is located. I logged just short of 2,000ft of elevation gain on the 26mi from White Mountain to the cabin.

The wind was blowing so hard at the cabin that I had to tie my sled to its stairs. I remembered Beat’s advice: if it’s blowing hard at the cabin, it will be a lot worse further out. It was only 5:30pm, but I decided to get some rest, eat, sleep for a few hours, and see if the wind would die down at the end of the day, as it often does. The cabin was recently remodeled by the Nome Kennel Club. It felt like a Gucci shelter: there was wood for weeks, it had solar-powered lights, and you could even charge your devices on a solar-powered USB port. I made a raging fire in the stove, melted snow, ate, and rolled out my sleeping bag. The cabin was shaking wildly in the wind. How long will I have to wait here? Several days, like the guys who were stuck for 4 days in a storm and ran out of coffee?!